Site Mobile Navigation

Union Leaders Say Railroad Resists Change

Union Pacific's plans to avoid accidents like those that killed 11 people last year are foundering on resistance from the railroad's middle managers and field supervisors, union leaders contended at a Federal safety hearing today.

Union Pacific executives pointed to safety improvements but agreed that their programs were far from complete. Some regulators asked how the railroad could improve safety on a system still so clogged that especially in Texas trips that would normally take hours instead take days, leaving crews exhausted.

The railroad's record was under examination today at a hearing by a National Transportation Safety Board panel that is considering the need for tougher Federal rules and enforcement.

Regulators and union leaders both praised a more cooperative spirit shown by Union Pacific executives, who said they were striving to overcome the industry's ''militaristic'' culture.

The hearing format allows regulators, company executives and union leaders to question and challenge each other directly. William C. Walpert, a Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers vice president whose responsibilities include safety, told Jerry R. Davis, the railroad's president, that managers harassed and intimidated workers into covering up safety risks. ''There's an emphasis on not reporting possible accidents or injuries,'' Mr. Walpert said.

Mr. Davis recited steps, including personal calls to any supervisors trying to squelch complaints, that he has taken to make sure any dangers are reported and remedied. His message to these supervisors, he said, was that ''if you harass an employee and ask them to cover up an injury and not report it, you are putting your job on the line.''

An error has occurred. Please try again later.

You are already subscribed to this email.

Questioned by a union leader about the company's heavy-handed management style, Mr. Davis responded with frank agreement. ''I believe we are militaristic,'' he said. ''It is far better today than it ever was. But we have a way to go.''

Among the continuing risks cited by union leaders were excessive and unpredictable work hours and a lack of training for engineers new to their routes. Safety board officials also asked about these complaints.

The company is in the midst of an intense hiring and training program to speed its trains and improve working conditions.

Union Pacific's $5.4 billion acquisition of Southern Pacific in 1996, which made it the industry's largest, has raised questions about whether the merger compromised safety. To prevent future mergers from putting workers in peril, Jolene M. Molitoris, chief of the Federal Railroad Administration, told safety board officials that new rules would require merging railroads to satisfy regulators that they have adequate safety plans.

''We as an organization were more structured for the railroads of the 60's than the railroads of the 90's,'' she said.